Chapter 303: Promise

In chaotic times, doom may come, or hope and profit may arise.

The most tragic end is not decline after a painful war, but silent extinction.

"At least, we've avoided the worst possibility."

Though no one had foretold it outright, Li En had already sensed the kingdom's destined fate.

With the revival of the demon god, silent extinction—no one answering the cries for help—seemed the only outcome.

Perhaps your end is brutal, perhaps your people suffer terribly—but what does it matter to outsiders in other lands?

If someone far away sheds two tears for your ruins, if a recorder deigns to jot down your existence, that's already mercy.

"This world, just taking care of yourself is hard enough."

Li En sighed; he didn't like this era, and perhaps no Li Ensu would.

As an Easterner, as the descendant of a state enterprise worker, as a former civil servant, he was a firm believer in centralization.

But he wasn't a blind worshipper of unification; instead, he rationally appreciated the efficiency and clear division of responsibility centralization brought.

He accepted all this only on the condition that the "center," while wielding power, also fulfilled its social contract to protect the people's survival and development.

But this world isn't like that—someone always tries to devour everything.

"Each side fights for itself; every individual, every community has its own interests. This is an era destined for compromise."

The gods are powerful, the earthly races are powerful, beasts, divine beasts, aberrations are powerful, ancient races are powerful, outer gods and outsiders are powerful too.

This world has borne too much; no single force can now swallow everything. A ruler must learn to balance and compromise, doing all he can to keep this mess from collapsing.

"Can half-elves be trusted? Is your master archmage trustworthy?"

"Enough. At least they're more trustworthy than dark elves. They have no escape—they need us."

Li En truly dared to use them, because in a sense he had nothing to lose—he needed more combat power, needed them to balance the pressure from existing forces. The arrival of the archmage and half-elves eased the burden on the frontline base significantly; if your bastards among the nobles and high priests try to stir trouble, see if they'll draw their blades on you.

"Uh, are dark elves reliable?" To ask this, Dainya, the chosen of the dark elf god, was absurd.

But the more she interacted with the dark elves, the more uneasy she felt—the racial divisions and differences weren't just present, they were vast and dangerous.

"Of course not reliable—in fact, no force, not even the good gods, is reliable. But when things go well, they can still lend a hand."

"Can't you just soothe me, even just to give me two days of peace?"

Dainya sighed; she likely understood the true state of this mess.

This mess continues only because of Dainya's "state policy."

Penetrating the underground ruins benefits everyone; the endless stream of materials and wealth is feeding all involved factions.

So the royal family's support for Dainya leading the excavation of the underground ruins is justified—those treasures are far more valuable than certain "gray industries."

The kingdom's people fight for survival; some good god churches and archmages fight only to keep this premium resource point. Their interests may align, but their will to fight is utterly different.

Li En's words were blunt: those seemingly powerful good god churches, archmages, and foreign factions can lend strength when things go well—but don't count on them when it comes to a real fight.

Even your so-called "God of Mirrors"—how many gods have abandoned their worthless chosen ones?

Your city of Huicheng and your kingdom are merely idle pawns to Him, meant for expansion; once the risk outweighs the gain, He'll sever the limb without hesitation.

"The bigger the storm, the easier to fish. At least, thinking positively is better than before."

From Dainya's perspective as queen, if she had sufficient capital, real authority, and military backing, she would naturally control, even suppress and eliminate, emerging domestic forces.

So far, she has won support from only one external noble—the city governor—and possesses only Huicheng Guard and City Militia. But even these forces aren't among the strongest in the kingdom.

If you broke down Huicheng's total power into percentages, Dainya could directly command and mobilize less than ten percent.

With so many powerful forces already present in the kingdom, since she can never become the sole "king," letting more forces rise to the surface and balance against the existing nobles and churches gives her greater leverage.

Leverage, in turn, can further compel other forces to fight for the kingdom's survival.

"Perhaps even a new god's church will join—then that church would be trustworthy."

After some thought, Li En decided to inform Dainya.